Pedrosa also ended the Valencia race between Lorenzo and Marquez, after a 30 lap contest which saw him come under attack from outgoing champion Lorenzo – who tried to slow the front running group around the 4km Spanish track.

20-year-old Marc Marquez has become the youngest ever MotoGP World Champion and the first rookie to take the title since Kenny Roberts in 1978.

Marquez was calm under pressure, settling for a third-place finish behind title rival Jorge Lorenzo and teammate Dani Pedrosa. It appeared the youngster had the bigger picture in mind, avoiding close combat throughout the race to win the title by a margin of four points.

“It’s a dream come true, maybe too early because I didn’t expect it in the first season in MotoGP,” said Marquez. “I cannot explain what I feel. To do it in front of all our fans, to fight with Jorge and Dani – two of the best riders in MotoGP.”

Jorge Lorenzo has topped the Warm-Up session ahead of the season-deciding GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana. The reigning World Champion, who will start this afternoon’s race from second place, led championship leader and pole-sitter Marc Marquez.

Sunday will mark the first last-race MotoGP title decider since Nicky Hayden claimed the world crown in 2006. On this occasion, rookie Marquez – aiming to become the youngest-ever premier class title winner – leads Lorenzo by 13 points.